Bears Cut Loose Starter After Landing Replacement in NFL Draft

Getty Tory Taylor, a 2024 fourth-round pick, is the Chicago News' new starting punter.

The Chicago Bears are officially moving on from Trenton Gill, the 2022 seventh-round pick who has spent the past two seasons as their starting punter.

Gill had two more seasons left on his rookie contract when the Bears released him from their 90-man offseason roster on May 2. The writing had been on the wall for him since last weekend, though, when the Bears used their fourth-round selection (No. 122) to land his replacement — Iowa’s Tory Taylor — on the final day of the 2024 NFL draft.

Taylor set a single-season NCAA record for most punting yards (4,479) in 2023 for the Hawkeyes and finished as a consensus first-team All-American for his efforts. He also pinned 32 of his 93 punts inside the 20-yard line during his final campaign, earning him the Ray Guy Award that is given each year to the top punter in college football.

Given Taylor’s prestige, there was no question the Bears were bringing him to replace Gill as their starting punter for the 2024 season. It is also not surprising that they cut Gill less than a week after drafting Taylor as it aligns with their desire to “do right” by their players. The 25-year-old now has a few weeks to find a new job before OTAs start.

The Bears also still have a second punter — veteran Corliss Waitman — on their 90-man roster to compete with Taylor leading up to his rookie season; although, Waitman is now much more likely to be their backup/emergency option for their practice squad.

Trenton Gill Struggled for Bears During 2024 Season

Gill seemed like one of the Bears’ returning starters who could be on the chopping block during the 2024 offseason. While young and playing on an affordable contract, he had not exactly wowed in his 34 starts since they took him in the seventh round of 2022.

In 2023, Gill finished as the 16th-most active punter (67 punts) in the league but only ended up with the 25th-best punting average (46.1 yards) and 25th-most punts pinned inside the 20-yard line (21). He also recorded the lowest net yardage (38.0) among 38 NFL punters and kickers who attempted at least two punts during the season.

With questions about Gill, the Bears signed Waitman to a reserve/future contract early in the offseason to give him more competition. Waitman has struggled to hold down an NFL job since coming into the league as a 2020 undrafted free agent, but he averaged 46.6 yards on 96 punts and pinned 30 inside the 20-yard line during his lone season as a full-time starter for the Denver Broncos in 2022.

Still, the Bears opted for an upgrade when the opportunity presented itself.

Bears Want Tory Taylor to Make Foes ‘Uncomfortable’

The Bears raised some eyebrows when they used their last pick in the 2024 draft — at least, before they traded a 2025 pick to get back into the fifth — to land Taylor. He had been the consensus top punter in the draft class, but some felt as though they should have prioritized bigger roster needs with the selection than a special teams starter.

Respectfully, Bears general manager Ryan Poles disagrees and believes Taylor will be able to help them make opponents “really uncomfortable” during the 2024 season.

“The thought process there is to make anyone we’re playing really uncomfortable,” Poles told The Pat McAfee Show on May 1. “I didn’t play much in the NFL, but I know running onto the field and having the ball spotted inside the 10-yard line is a very uncomfortable feeling, it’s disheartening at times, and I love taking advantage of field position. And really, that should help us with points as well.”

Taylor’s precision with his punts is one of his strongest traits as a player. His punting quite literally helped Iowa win games over the past three seasons, forcing opponents into situations where they had to shift focus to essentially trying to avoid a safety.

One of the best examples is Taylor’s game against South Dakota State in September 2022. He punted 10 times for 479 yards and pinned seven (!) of them inside the 20-yard line, playing a crucial role in the Hawkeye’s 7-3 victory over the Jackrabbits.